“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”
(Oscar Wilde quotes – Irish Poet and Novelist, 1854-1900)

Following the birds which belongs to some kind of ethereal dreams, this is now the Asfi Masjid (mosque) which is one the largest places of worship in India.
It is in the Bara Imambara (also called the Asafi Imambara) complex in Lucknow, the city of Nawabs, built by Asaf-ud-daulah, Nawab of Lucknow, in 1784.
Bara means big, and an imambara is a shrine built by Shia Muslims for the purpose of Azadari.

“I can only note that the past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time.
It expands later, and thus we don’t have complete emotions about the present, only about the past.”
(Virginia Woolf – English writer, 1882-1941)

This is a view of the Chhota Imambara, also known as Hussainabad Imambara, which is located in the city of Lucknow, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Built by Muhammad Ali Shah, The third Nawab of Avadh in 1838, it was to serve as his own mausoleum.
It is also known as the Palace of Lights.
Thousands of labourers worked on the project to gain famine relief.

This picture was shot at the time of sunset, the monument was reflecting in the waters and there was a kind of magic all around the place, it was easy to feel how the past could have been beautiful in the City of Nawabs.

Since many years I wanted to take a few pictures of the Taj Mahal from the other side of the Yamuna river and a few days ago I could at last do it while I was going by car from Delhi to Lucknow.
Rabindranath Tagore once said that this wonder of the world was “A tear drop in the face of eternity”, those words allow me to fly away with the birds and to open a new ethereal dream, under a mysterious moonlight…

This is the main entrance of the tomb of the third Mughal Emperor, Akbar the Great (1542-1605).
It is located at Sikandra, in he suburbs of Agra, on the Mathura road (NH2).
I always saw this architectural masterpiece by night as I often use this road in order to go to Varanasi from Delhi and last week I decided to stop there during daytime and to take a few pictures.
Once again it was a dream with eyes wide open…

Akbar considered all faiths to be equal, and felt that they all taught of the same divine truth.
He invited missionaries and teachers from many faiths to visit his court, and teach their beliefs.
The grandson of Babur encouraged everyone to get along, and to be tolerant of one another with the will of strengthening his kingdom by bringing peace and stability to his land.
It was he who wanted both Hindus and Muslims to be united.

“Contemplate the Name yourself; inspire it to others;
By attending to it, discoursing of it, living by it, obtain liberation.
The true essence, eternal is the Lord’s Name:
By spontaneous devotion, says Nanak, chant the Lord’s praise.”
(Guru Granth Sahib Adi Granth)

This image was shot last Friday at the Gurdwara Bangla Sahib which is located near Connaught Place in Delhi.
It was at sunset, those two young men were praying facing the Temple.
I took several pictures that I showed them after.

“Whenever we encounter the Infinite in man, however imperfectly understood, we treat it with respect.
Whether in the synagogue, the mosque, the pagoda, or the wigwam, there is a hideous aspect which we execrate and a sublime aspect which we venerate.
So great a subject for spiritual contemplation, such measureless dreaming — the echo of God on the human wall!”
Victor Hugo (French romantic Poet, Novelist and Dramatist, 1802-1885)

I shot this picture a few hours ago as I was passing by this mosque which is located nearby Sigra in Varanasi (Benaras).
My Indian dreams have oftenly been under the influence of those bulbous domes with slender minarets and cupolas…

Last afternoon it was already very hot in Delhi, I was with some friends and we went to Humayun’s tomb which is a complex of buildings in Mughal architecture located in Nizamuddin East.
Over there we could enjoy some cool wind coming from the gardens intersected by watercourses and it was for a while something close to an Eden dream.
It is said that the architecture of the mausoleum inspired Shah Jahan for the construction of the Taj Mahal.

“Be kind to all creatures; this is the true religion.” (Siddhārtha Gautama, known as the Buddha – c. 563 BCE/480 BCE – c. 483 BCE/400 BCE) This is a close-up of one of the statues of the Buddha inside the Tibetan temple in Sarnath which is located at 13 km away from Varanasi (Benaras). More […]

Originally posted on Red Halo: Since the first collection, Red Halo introduced a specific design reminding the Mughal’s royal court magnificence. It was designed by Manish Gupta and inspired by a Persian carpet style, in a way it was making a bridge between the carpet industry that he knew so well and this interior company…

Originally posted on Red Halo: Our show-room in Benares was thought with neutral colours and simple contemporary elements which allow to emphasize our products. We keep this concept for the booths we settle all over the world when we show our collections during exhibitions and fairs or for the Red Halo shops and corners in…

“The longing for Paradise is man’s longing not to be man.” (From “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” by Milan Kundera) This picture was shot at Manikarnika Ghat along the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras) where Hindus are cremated hoping to receive moksha, freedom from samsara, the cycle of death and rebirth. Moksha allows one to […]

“I tell you once and for all— in front of the angel pictures on the wall, that I am not a host to load-bearing ghosts or headyentities, and if I was ever holy, I have fallen far into the dense atmosphere of the living.” (From ” Drum Machine” by Kristen Henderson) This is a street […]

“It takes a lot of imagination to be a good photographer. You need less imagination to be a painter because you can invent things. But in photography everything is so ordinary; it takes a lot of looking before you learn to see the extraordinary.” (David Bailey – English fashion and portrait photographer, b.1938) This picture […]

“To the Divine” is a picture shot during the Ganga Aarti celebrated for Dev Diwali at Prayag ghat along the holy waters of the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras). It was selected for the image cover of the October 2014 issue of “SHUBH YATRA”, the inflight magazine of Air India. Join the photographer at LAURENT […]

“Monsoon’s showers” is a picture shot in New Delhi during the first day of monsoon. Some devotee were waiting in line in the street in order to worship in a temple, they were enjoying the rain after the heat of summer. It was selected for “De l’eau et des hommes” a book by Jean-Claude Lefeuvre […]

“Out of Sundays Dancing” is a picture with four parrots dancing in the air at Munshi ghat along the Ganges in Varanasi (Benaras). It was selected to make the cover of “A Suitable Boy” by Vikram Seth which is released for the 20Th Anniversary Edition. _______________________ “A Suitable Boy”: 20Th Anniversary Edition by Vikram Seth […]